It was an eventful night in MLB last night. We saw a pair of three homer game, and a trio of two homer games as well. The worst offender? That would be Camden Yards, where the Nationals and Orioles combined for eight homers in Baltimore's 9-6 win. A close second would be Philadelphia, where five of the night's seven runs came on solo homers.
PIC OF THE DAY
David Lough of the Royals slides into third base and gets a nice mouthful of dirt in the process. (Jeff Curry-USA TODAY Sports)
Game of the Night: Padres 3, Mariners 2 (ten innings). This game was deadlocked at one run apiece when Jason Bay homered in the ninth off of San Diego closer Huston Street to give Seattle a 2-1 lead. In the bottom of the ninth, the typically reliable Tom Wilhelmsen put the first three hitters he faced on base before allowing a game-tying sac fly to Kyle Blanks, but got out of the inning without any more harm. In the bottom of the tenth, Yoervis Medina somehow fared worse than Wilhelmsen, allowing an infield single and a single before intentionally walking Chase Headley to load the bases for Will Venable, who hit a ball that deflected off of Kendrys Morales' glove to give the Padres the win.
Pitching Lines of the Night: Roberto Hernandez led the Rays to a 3-1 win over the Marlins, giving up one unearned run on three hits in 8 2/3 innings, striking out five and walking none. Eric Stults and Joe Saunders had a pitchers duel in San Diego, with Stults allowing one run on three hits in eight innings, striking out 12 without a walk, and Saunders allowing one run on four hits in seven innings, walking none and striking out three. Samuel Deduno had a good start for the Twins in their 4-1 win over Milwaukee, allowing one run on four hits in seven innings, walking two and striking out two. Tyler Chatwood dominated the Astros in Colorado's 6-3 loss to Houston, allowing two runs on four hits in six innings, walking one and striking out ten. Jered Weaver's return to the hill for the Angels went well in their 4-3 win over the Dodgers, as he went six innings and gave up one run on five hits, striking out seven without a walk.
Hitting Lines of the Night: Dioner Navarro led the Cubs to a 9-3 win over the White Sox, going 3/3 with four runs, six RBI, a walk, and three homers. Ryan Zimmerman performed well for the Nationals in their 9-6 loss to the Orioles, going 3/4 with four RBI and three homers. Chris Davis was just a bit better though, going 4/4 with a pair of solo homers and a stolen base. Domonic Brown raked for the Phillies in their win over Boston, going 2/4 with a pair of solo homers and a stolen base. Troy Tulowitzki pretty much *was* the Rockies offense against Houston, as he went 3/4 with three RBI, a double, a pair of homers, and a walk.
Other Games: The Blue Jays shut out the Braves 3-0. The Indians beat the Reds 5-2. The Mets smashed the Yankees 9-4, their third straight win over their rival. The Pirates rallied late to beat the Tigers 5-3. St Louis rallied late to beat Kansas City 5-3. The A's beat the Giants 9-6, taking their third straight from the defending champs. The Diamondbacks and Rangers were postponed in Texas.
What You Missed: Aaron Hicks made an unreal catch for the Twins. Josh Sale was suspended by the Rays. Don't go nuts for closers in the offseason. Vernon Wells is awful again. Kyuji Fujikawa needs Tommy John surgery.
Today's Games: Jake Peavy and Travis Wood will duel at Wrigley. Felix Hernandez takes on Andrew Cashner in San Diego. RA Dickey and Mike Minor will go at it in Atlanta. Kyle Lohse starts for the Brewers in Minnesota. Doug Fister will start for the Tigers against Jeff Locke in Pittsburgh. Alex Colome will make his MLB debut for the Rays in Miami, and Michael Wacha will debut for the Cardinals against the Royals.
National TV: Mets-Yankees (7 PM, MLB Network), Red Sox-Phillies (7 PM, MLB Network)
Enjoy your day of baseball, everyone.
